Electronic Diplomacy - Essay Example

Electronic Diplomacy Mobility The activities of the diplomatic currently are supported by internet tools. Most of the diplomats in the current world depend on internet for research, communication with family and colleagues via email (Grant, 2004). Furthermore, the diplomats negotiates text that are drafted in electronic format at the same time, the diplomats are increasingly utilizing the new social networking like face book and blogs. This has reduced the mobility of the diplomats. By the reduction of mobility it means that the diplomats do not need to physically travel from point to another or one country to another. For them to be in touch with the world diplomats have utilized the use of facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and the social media network of the country. Using the social media network, the diplomats can easily address the audience with the specific massage they want to convey to them. This is to mean that the diplomats need not to travel up to be the audience are for him or her to deliver the massage hence reducing the mobility (Gaida Jeanette, 2013). The incising use of E-diplomacy has enabled the people in the places that cannot be reached to understand the stand of the government. For example if the country is being faced with drought or hunger in some region of the country. E-diplomacy can be utilized to inform the affected people on the government plan towards solving the drought or the hanger issue. The processing of visa documents have been simplified by e-diplomacy tools furthermore it has facilitated the direct with citizens who are at different countries (IRM’s Office of eDiplomacy, n.d). In case of the occurrence of any emergency, e-diplomacy has provided foreign citizens in a given country a chance to communicate with there respective consultants or state embassies. E-diplomacy discussion forum may provide an opportunity for diplomats to hold a free-wheeling debate and provide inputs that are valuable on the issues of foreign policy. The Smartphone apps enable the citizens to access information on passport norms and the initiatives of foreign policy. Secure visual platforms with safety features that are stringent have been availed to enable discussion confidentiality between specific diplomats. For example in the perspective of India, the ministry flagship publication that is printed in fourteen different languages and distributed among the Indian missions that is abroad currently have a version that is digital. Furthermore, the publication will be availed in a digital magazine store of a dedicated channel which will enable easy access of the information by the readers. The main idea is that such a publication is to be availed also outside library so that it can easily be accessed by those people who have the laptops, tablets, iPads and Smartphones and many more. The MEA’s digital endeavour has been undertaking a task of building an agreement and treaty digital database that India and other countries have signed. The ministry treaty and legal division have prepared la database providing details starting from the year 1983 to date. By people using their mobiles, they will be in a position to confirm the status of their passports and also apply for their passports. Collaboration, Communication and information sharing Diplomacy face has been changed by social media, and it has provided a better way for easy communication with the whole world. Furthermore, the diplomats and the governors have been powered by the social media hence enabling ease in communication, transparency, efficiency and better engagement. Some refers to it as social-media diplomacy, digital diplomacy, or Twiplomacy. No matter the name given to it, it is known as e-diplomacy (Sandre Andreas, 2012). Regardless of the important changes in transport and communication that has been currently brought by globalisation, the international diplomacy and politics has remain unchanged. The current diplomats and leaders travel along the globe to personally meet with friends and other diplomats just as the diplomats of both the 14th and 15th centuries did. Usually the internet communication technology and teleconferencing has majorly changed the process and way of doing various businesses and the way of conducting social interaction. In spite of all this the field of diplomacy is still dominated by the eye to eye communication. For instant, the resent United Nation Climate Change Conference that was at Copenhagen (Dimitrov, 2010), it was ironical for the negotiators to travel for a long distance in a high emission aircrafts in order to come up with a solution on how to reduce the emotion of these gases instead of utilizing the current communication technology that is more advanced. The summit was the G20 faced criticism to why they statesmen and women were involved in a meeting that was very costly at the time of global recession (Eaton, Kortum, Neiman & Romalis, 2011). However, it can still be argued that the revolution in technology has affected diplomacy. Even though it has not affected the traditional diplomacy core aspect like the personal meeting, it has affected the way business is being done by the department of the states and foreign ministries. The use of phones, social media, tablets and smart phones have greatly affected the mode and speed of communication whit has been efficient and very fast (Free, Phillips, Watson, Galli, Felix, Edwards & Haines, 2013). They have allowed ease in communication sharing between different diplomats. E-diplomacy has been taken very serious by other nations. For instant, the United States of America by September 2012 had about full time staff members who totalled to one hundred and fifty working in twenty-five e-diplomacy nodes that were different at the headquarters. The United States of America has a total of over nine hundred persons who are using e-diplomacy at the abroad at the United States of American mission (Hanson Fergus, 2012). Apart from the United State of America, other countries that have followed the same direction is Russia, Montenegro, China, Serbia and the United Kingdom all embracing strategies in e-diplomacy (Digital Diplomacy, 2012). They mainly embrace the utilization of social media platform that includes Twitter and facebook. The use of Twitter and facebook has allowed the diplomats to reach people from far places and interact with the public in general. According to the report by the press, about two-third of the one hundred and ninety three of the member state of the United Nation have twitter accounts. The benefits of this information sharing were witnessed in Boston marathon bombings. At the time of the attack, the initial information on the incident was first shared through the social media twelve minutes before being reported by the major news organization in the country. Management systems and applications E-learning has played a very important role when it comes to the sector of education. Learning has been made easy as a person can obtain the lecture form his home or office. Diplomats can be taught new idea on the issue they need to understand (Alonso, López, Manrique, & Viñes, 2005). This has made teaching the diplomats new idea very easy at their respective place of choice. In addition to e-learning, digital electronic technology has the prospective of enhancing the participation of the nation by inputting the provision mechanism of the foreign policy that handles the challengers of a state and satisfies the interest of the diplomats. The utilization of the output and inputs electronic analysis that shows the international commitment as provided by the digital technology is known as internet engagement. Al these aspects are covered by diplomacy and it proves the ever-present nature of the technology that is driven by internet in the international engagement. The strategy of E-diplomacy encompasses three transformations that are critical. This critical information includes, external, internal and relational. Internal transformation may be defined as the utilization of communication and information technology to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of internal government process and function by interrelating different agenises and departments. Hence, information between different governments can flow faster and easier. The public diplomacy depends both on it facility and the traditional media. This means that the tomorrows and today’s diplomats must have a good understanding of them. The media is increasingly invading the diplomatic relation privacy. This means that the diplomat must be well prepared for the unplanned encounter with the media and have a plan in place for facing them in a manner that is organized for media conference statement and interviews. The diplomats will have to learn the facilities in IT to reach the media in case some things need to be quickly done or when the diplomats need to reach the media without being represented in the region that he or she works. The diplomats need also to understand how to handle the hostility of media and focus to turn it around into sympathy or neutrality. This is majorly to do with the message content instead of the way in which that message is delivered. The human resource department have advanced and have focused in the use of information and technology in the recruitment of the new employees in an organization. This has enabled them to reach various new talented people from all over the world. The advert has always been done online. Furthermore, the application for various positions in an organization has been on line. This has majorly contributed in reducing the cost incurred during the advertisement. Global and Internal The telephone, telegraph, the fax machine and the telex have steadily allowed continuous links with diplomats who are abroad with those based at home. It has continued to prosper in this direction but its main gift is networking. At the ministries level, this means that all the sections and divisions can interact constantly including accessing the files of each and everyone. The same can be attained with posts and mission abroad at their level and at the same time their home base. As a result most of the consultation matters, administrative work and accountant can be automated and solved or handled at one place at the home base. This will go hand to hand with the outside post or mission simply availing the input and implementing the result. Networking can also reach other departments in the government. This will enable the bringing together of all the activities of the administration in relation that is external both at the decision making and the preparatory level and when the policies are being implemented for instant by the acting abroad. An additional circle may be added by the extension of the network to the non-governmental bodies and to the private sector of all types having a stake in the relation that is external (Kappeler, 1998). Networking could go behind the establishment of the nation. The regional group members could improve their efficiency and capability of intervention if they were networked and their agents in contacts that are constant. These systems will be mainly important small countries groups like those of Southern Pacific and Caribbean. It will also engage their organizations at the regional level and also to ensure that the delicates a given country may possibly serve others by being in steady connection with everyone involved. OSCE and NATO which are bigger institution may think of networking their members (Sagramoso, 2003). As the bigger countries national establishment are warred on the issues of networking beyond their own institutions limit. Furthermore even the networking of such institution still leaves a lot to be preferred as a result of the opposition of the security and traditional minded groups. It is clear that overcoming of such obstacles will not be possible very soon. A form of networking that is less contentious are will be mainly useful to countries that are small. Internal networks are being created by international institutions including the access to documentation and library facilities. The member countries can accesses the out put over the internet. Support is offered by the United Nations to permanent missions for New York small countries for installing easy access to their network. Of late, the Trade and Development Board of UNCTAD in Geneva and the UN general assembly second committee in New York sat in a combined sitting over audio- visual service. In future, the poor countries may have an opportunity to be presented only in one body if all the maters that are vital are all discussed in only one session with other countries (Kappeler, 1998). Training, awareness, Leadership and governance When it comes to the financial support of the ICT project, fifty- five potential founders have been identified. Thirteen of this founder’s had played a very important role in covering both the initial and the current cost of the ICT (Total Cost Ownership). These founders included; Big Lottery Fund, Comic Relief, Community Foundation for Merseyside (Merseyside only), Henry Smith Charity, The Baring Foundation, The Bridgehouse Trust (Greater London only), The Capital Community Foundation (London only), The Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, The Essex Community Foundation (Essex only), The John Ellerman Foundation, The Lloyds TSB Foundation for England and Wales, The Northern Rock Foundation, The Tudor Trust (Cropper Karen, 2007). It is vital to understand that the cost of ICT entails a lot and not only the software or hardware. The community sector and the voluntarily organizations that are on fixed budget need to understand the Total Cost of Ownership. They need to understand that this cost includes the cost to install the technology, network setting, equipments and cables needed for connection, the support cost, including the training of people who use the machine and the repair and the revenue cost that is ongoing (Cropper Karen, 2007). The framework of the national IT training and awareness initiative is determined ion the development of skills of information communication technology. Furthermore, it is aimed in developing the means and increasing the IT ability and awareness within the community and the government. Some of the benefits that will be obtained from it are; increasing the civil servant performance and skills, give all civil servant equal opportunity for training. In addition it is determined to empower the civil servants under the civil service ministry to with the skills and knowledge in the ICT to enable the E-service to the public sector. Lastly, helps the ITA to utilize the government IT training and Certificate findings in relation to process, schedule, observation and infrastructure of other programs of training (E-oman, 2015). The project of community IT training has an aim of providing training opportunity of information communication technology to the citizen of a nation to provide them with a chance in a knowledge based digital society. The planed aim is provide digital literacy training programs to the community by utilizing community knowledge centre that will be established in various regions of the country. Some of the benefits of this program include creation of employment opportunity for the youths. Also, the project will provide training in ICT hence reducing illiteracy to the entire citizen in the country. Finally, the project will create ICT awareness in order to set up a knowledge society community (E-oman, 2015). IT governance is about the managing a large cooperate Information and Technology in a way that not only works according to the stipulated rules and regulation but also to ensure that the business operates according to the rules and regulations. The governance task is not an easy task to achieve as the new regulation also arrives like the states, federal and European government. For the achievement of efficient governing, all the leaders in their respective areas are to be self-confident. For most of the industries in the world, IT will be the main game changer (Rittershaus Axel, 2014). Bibliography ALONSO, F., LÓPEZ, G., MANRIQUE, D., & VIÑES, J. M. (2005). An instructional model for web‐based e‐learning education with a blended learning process approach. British Journal of educational technology, 36(2), 217-235. 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The South Caucasus: A Challenge for the EU, 63-89. SANDRE ANDREAS (2012). E-Diplomacy Beyond Social Media. Web < http://opencanada.org/features/the-think-tank/comments/e-diplomacy-beyond-social- media/> accessed June 16, 2015. Read More